If you have ever wondered how NASA moves those solid rockets around prior to launch, then this all-new Solid Rocket Transport train should give you the answer.

Due to the rocket motors large size, moving it completely assembled from its Utah manufacturing site to Cape Canaveral, Florida is impractical. Consequently, the rocket section is loaded atop a heavy-duty flat car and transported by rail in a unit train to the launch area where it is then assembled. The route traveled takes the train southeast via the Union Pacific, Kansas City Southern, CSX and Florida East Coast routes. Each rocket section is covered with a removable large steel cover for both protection and secrecy as to the car's load. Often each car in the unit train is separated by "buffer" car that can absorb any impact caused by a derailment or other mishap. The buffer cars can take the form of additional flat cars with covers or a boxcar.

The Premier Line six-car Solid Rocket Transport train includes five 47' TTX Heavy Duty Flat Cars with covers. The cover houses different sections of the rocket, each of which can be removed from the car and assembled into a free-standing rocket. When assembled, the rocket measures 30" in height or nearly 123 scale feet! A sixth car in the form of a streamlined passenger coach serves as the Transport train's crew car.

This set can also be combined with a 6-car Union Pacific Hi-Cube Box Car set for use as buffer cars.

This will not be an inexpensive model to buy: the MSRP is $749.95 and pre-orders are averaging $675 online. I'm looking forward to more photos being released, but for now, here are the available images from the 2010 MTH catalog:

Click to enlarge. Credit: MTH

apolloprojeckt

That is great. Will come this train come also on the European market? And is there also a Soyuz rocket version of this train? Maybe some people know this...

history in miniature

What a diorama that would make! I have seen the train guys who do the indoor/outdoor layouts, wow, that would be so cool.

I hate this site sometimes, I don't need this to think about.

Jay Chladek

Well, in my case all I have to do is look at my pocketbook and realize there is no way I can afford this and it makes the decision not to order that much easier.

But, it is a nice set and I am glad somebody is doing it. Perhaps one day it will be done in HO scale as that might be a bit closer to my price range, my display range and also close enough to 1/72 to work with a Monogram shuttle stack.

Robert Pearlman

For a long time, I thought this set may have never shipped, having never come across any photos of it "in the wild." But then this morning, I came across this video review:

I am really tempted to try to find this now but my brief searches have turned up empty. If anyone comes across this set still being offered, I would appreciate the heads-up...

the clocks running

Very cool set! I also wish it was available in HO scale.

Ronpur

That is beautiful. I hope you find one. I wish they had a N Scale. That would be close to 1/144th scale.

p51

In model trains, the rule of thumb is the usually something is released in HO scale before any other.

That said, O scale (often called, 'three rail' for the more toylike Lionel-designed track with three rails, there are O scale models that are far more correct and run on scale 2-rail tracks, O scale is 1/48 generally) has a massive fan base. MTH makes stuff that is considered almost 'fine scale' but runs on the Lionel track. Nobody makes these cars in HO scale.

MTH just came out with these last month.

Robert Pearlman

quote:Originally posted by p51:MTH just came out with these last month.

Came out with what?

p51

The SRB cars in O scale, the subject of the thread. Sorry if I confused some folks by not stating what it was they'd come out with.

There appeared to be some confusion on when these cars were actually released in this thread...

Robert Pearlman

Okay, you still have me confused, as the video review was posted in October 2010, the set was featured in MTH's catalog in 2010 and all the online stores seem to report selling out in 2010. Where did you see they were (re?)released last month?

p51

I checked with a hobby shop locally (I had to call them on something else and asked about this as well). They said these cars actually were very recently released.

If so, that's normal as model train companies often will advertise something that doesn't yet exist as tooling or even in the form of a blueprint (you've all seen the same thing for some space models, too, of course).

press4meco

These sets aren't the easiest to come by these days. I just checked MTH's website and neither this one, nor the previous version released back in '04 show as available at any retailers.

Trains, especially in O-scale, do have limited quantity releases. That's not to say it won't get released again in few years. The tooling already exists.

One of these sets do show up from time to time on eBay. I'm usually watching out for them. Most recently some individual booster transport cars (not from this set) were listed, but never sold. Seller was looking for $100/car.

I actually was able to find and purchased this set about two years ago thanks to seeing it on this site. It started me back into the model train hobby. I was into trains as a young kid so getting this set just served to bridge the gap between my interest in space and model trains.

To see if I can help out, I put out a request on the "want to buy" subforum on the model train forum I also frequent. If I should hear anything back, I will let you know, Robert.

Robert Pearlman

quote:Originally posted by press4meco:To see if I can help out, I put out a request on the "want to buy" subforum on the model train forum I also frequent.

Thanks! And thanks to those who e-mailed with tips, too!

Robert Pearlman

I am very happy to share that today I took delivery of the MTH SRM transport model train set, including a set of six boxcars that were offered separately (the boxcars were used as buffers between the cars carrying the loaded motors).

Thank you to those who e-mailed with tips, and to Joe (press4meco) for putting me in touch with the collector who sold me the set.

I somewhat forgot how large O-scale is. I had originally planned to build a shelf to display the set but I didn't take into account how long the train would be, especially with the boxcars added, too.